Emanuela Gatto è nata a Genzano di Roma nel 1978. Nel maggio 2003 ha conseguito la laurea in Chimica, con voti 110/110 e lode presso l’ Università degli Studi di Roma Tor Vergata, dove, nel 2007 ha conseguito il Titolo di Dottore in Chimica. Nello stesso anno, con la sua tesi, dal titolo “Conformationally constrained peptides as new nanomaterials for electrons and energy transfer”, ha vinto il premio Semerano della Società Chimica Italiana come miglior tesi di dottorato di argomento Chimico-Fisico in Italia.
Nel 2007 ha trascorso un periodo di ricerca in Svezia come borsista Marie Curie, presso la Divisione di Fisica Applicata del Dipartimento di Fisica, Chimica e Biologia dell’Università di Linköping. Dal 2008 lavora al Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche dell’Università degli Studi di Roma Tor Vergata, dove è attualmente professore associato.
La sua attività di ricerca è focalizzata sullo studio di materiali sostenibili a base di polimeri naturali. Attualmente è coinvolta in due importanti linee di ricerca, che riguardano lo studio di processi di trasferimento elettronico fotoindotto di peptidi depositati su superficie, mediante tecniche spettroscopiche ed elettrochimiche e la sintesi e caratterizzazione di bioplastiche a partire da scarti organici.
Per le pubblicazioni: https://scholar.google.it/citations?user=a3IEMeMAAAAJ&hl=it
PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND
05/2003: first degree in Chemistry (cum laude) at the University of Rome Tor Vergata.
03/2007: Ph.D. degree in Chemistry at the University of Rome Tor Vergata, in collaboration with the University of Catania. Thesis title: "Conformationally constrained peptides as new nanomaterials for electrons and energy transfer"
02-08/2007: Marie Curie fellowship at the Division of Applied Physics, Department of Physics, Chemistry and Biology of the University of Linköping, Sweden, in the group of prof. Daniel Filippini and I. Lundström (Member of the Committee of the Nobel Prize in Physics at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences).
09/2007-08/2008: Post-doc fellowship in a MIUR founded PRIN 2006 project. Department of Chemical Sciences and Technologies at the University of Rome Tor Vergata.
14-01-2009 Assistant Professor of Physical Chemistry at the Department of Chemical Sciences and Technologies of the University of Rome Tor Vergata.
2019: teaching staff member of the PhD Course in Materials for health, Environment and Energy.
12-2021 Associate Professor Achievement of Physical Chemistry at the Department of Chemical Sciences and Technologies of the University of Rome Tor Vergata.
RESEARCH EXPERIENCE
Emanuela Gatto is author or co-author of 71 papers, in ISI peer-reviewed journals, 5 chapters of books, 3 patents, several oral communications to national and international conferences. She supervised 26 Bachelor Degrees, 8 Master Degree thesis in Chemistry at the University of Rome Tor Vergata, three PhD students and one post-doc. She held invited talk at the University of Catania and Linköping (Sweden). She was invited speaker at the E-MRS Fall Meeting 2013; invited keynote lecturer, chair and invited organizer at the E-MRS Fall Meeting 2016, Symposium B and E-MRS Spring Meeting 2017, Symposium K:": "Bioinspired and Biointegrated Materials as Frontiers Nanomaterials".
She participated to research projects supported by PRIN 2003, PRIN 2006, PRIN 2008, PRIN 2010, PRIN 2016, Horizon 2020 and Consolidate the Foundation (a grant from the University Tor Vergata). She was the Local Principal Investigator of a research projects for young researcher supported by FIRB 2012. Title of Project: “Lipid based sensor for the detection of tumor biomarkers”
She was the Principal Investigator of a research projects supported by FISR-MUR 2020. Title of Project: “Smascherate: mascherine sostenibili.”
She is the Local Principal Investigator of a research projects supported by PRIN 2022. Title of Project: “From Nanoplasstic to bioplastic toward enviromental sustainability: a green algae-based approach"
In 2011 she won a scholarship in the European network: LASERLAB EUROPE, to spend a research period at the University of Coimbra (Portugal).
In February 2004 she gained the Chemist Qualification at the University of Rome La Sapienza.
Her research activity is focused on the study of sustainable materials based on natural polymers. She is currently involved in two important lines of research, which concern the study of photoinduced electron transfer processes of peptides deposited on surfaces, by spectroscopic and electrochemical techniques and on the synthesis and characterization of bioplastics starting from organic waste.
AWARDS
Nov 2012: "Futuro in ricerca" grant (for young researcher) from the Italian Ministry of Research and Education
Sep 2012: Scholarship from European Peptide Society to attend the 32nd Peptide European Symposium.
Jun 2007: Semerano Prize for the “Best PhD thesis” in Physical Chemistry award by the Italian Chemical Society.
2004, 2005 e 2006: Scholarship from SCI to attend the National Conferences of the Physical Chemistry Division.
Sep 2013: Invited Speaker at the E-MRS Fall Meeting 2013, Symposium G: "Bioinspired and Biointegrated Materials as Frontiers Nanomaterials III".
Sep 2016: Invited Lecturer at the E-MRS Fall Meeting 2016, Symposium B: "Bioinspired and Biointegrated Materials as Frontiers Nanomaterials III".
May 2017: E-MRS Spring Meeting 2017, Symposium K:"Bioinspired and Biointegrated Materials as Frontiers Nanomaterials III".
Oct 2018: Winner of the Start Cup Lazio 2018, as the best business idea born into a Research Center.
Jun 2019: she was invited by the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella, as distinguished researcher to the Party to celebrate the National Day of the Italian Republic
Feb 2024: Emanuela Gatto won the award as woman scientist for the climate change, Bringing to Light, Scienziate per il Clima, the initiative aimed to celebrate women working in the environmental sector that is organized every year to celebrate the International Day of Women and Girls in Science.